Because Edwards is A: younger, and wants to be a starting QB. Redman is content to just collect a check as Ryan's backup. He has no desire to be a starter, therefore he is never going to push Matt Ryan, which brews that attitude of complacency that we have in Flowery Branch. Edwards knows Koetter's offense, having spent a year in that offense.

Yeah theres also a reason Edwards is a journeyman at this point, cause he's no more capable of seizing a starting gig than Redman is. Plus you're presuming Redman is content, when in reality how the hell is he ever gonna take Ryan's job? Haven't we seen the Edwards story at this point, Buffalo, Jacksonville, etc. Also telling Keotter did get TD to go after him also.

Edwards signed with the Raiders this past summer because it was closer to home, and probably because Jason Campbell isn't on the surest of ground as far as keeping his starting job is concerned. And he signed with the Eagles, presumably because their starting QB is oft-injured, and thus it offers him a good opportunity for playing time, and thus potentially bringing him one step closer to being a starter once more in this league. Edwards doesn't mind competing for his job, he's had to do so in Oakland, now in Philly, as well as Jacksonville.

Why didn't the Falcons at least work out Edwards over the past month? We have to assume either: A) Koetter isn't his biggest fan or B) The Falcons just didn't care. Neither assumption is more likely than the other.

We'll see how the Falcons handle their backup QB situation. Maybe they go out and pick up someone like a Jason Campbell or David Garrard, that is a clear upgrade over Redman. BUt if we see a week or two from now that this team is very quick to re-up with Chris Redman, it smacks of that complacency I've been talking about.

It doesn't matter whether Edwards is an upgrade over Redman or not, the point is that this team needs to be more willing to challenge the status quo, and if we want to get more out of the QB position, then new blood is needed, particularly new blood that has a desire to be a starting QB in this league. That player is not Chris Redman. He's just happy to collect the check and sit on his thumbs here in Atlanta. If he wasn't, then he would have at least tested the market 2 years ago.

Not signing Trent Edwards does not in any way make me doubt Dimitroff's abilities as a GM. There are plenty of journeyman QB's in the league that Atlanta can pick up and plug in at backup if they choose.

If your banking anything on Atlanta not signing Edwards I question your sanity just a little bit. You make lots of fine points Pudge but this is starting to turn into a witch hunt.

I haven't agreed with all the moves this team has made and it is Dimitroff & Smith that finally made the Falcons a pernial contender instead the oft floundering franchise that could never put together back to back winning season.

I just want to see more effort dirty. IMHO, Trent Edwards offered everything we should want in a backup QB. A young and hungry playedr that had some knowledge of the offense. The Falcons made no effort to sign him. Will that make or break their off-season? Of course not. But what I see in Atlanta is a lot of little things that add up to a whole lot of nothing. And while others will dismiss them, I'm going to be a little less tight-lipped about calling them out on the little things that they do not do.

There's a lot of good free agents out there, and the Falcons don't have to sign all of them, but bringing in a few of them to at least work out with the team to me is a significant step in the right direction. The Falcons have worked out next to ZERO players over the past 5 months. This has been their M.O. for years now, only looking to improve their roster at the end of training camp or during the designated free agency period. If it's not March or the last week of August, then the Falcons have shown minimal effort about improving their roster. It's like this front office sweats complacency. And while others see not signing Edwards as 1 move that they could have made that they didn't, and thusly "no big deal," I see it as 1 of 30 moves that this team hasn't made, and thus a "very big deal."

We'll see what happens, and maybe something happens in the next 3 weeks that blows me away, but I'm not going to hold my breath...

Saying "Thomas D." dropped the ball Again", takes away your credibiIity, we all know you among many have some great knowledge,but statement like that Blaming the Gm on not getting Green, is not only crazy, when your so much better than that!!

NOT SO HAPPY REX: Ryan was asked how he felt about backup quarterback Greg McElroy’s offseason comments about a "corrupt mindset" in the Jets locker room and "extremely selfish individuals" on the team.

“I was angry about it,” Ryan said. “I never agreed with all the statements he made and things. You know, hey, the thing about our football team that separates, that maybe we are different than other teams is we are truly a transparent organization. You're going to know a lot about the New York Jets in the great times but you're also going to know a lot about us in the not so good times.”

“That's just one man's opinion,” Ryan added. “I'll listen to everything. I don't think it was the way it's portrayed out there that we had a huge problem. There's no question that we had some problems with some individuals. But we're going to fix it.”

When asked if the Jets are placing extra focus on acquiring a backup quarterback to push Sanchez, Ryan joked, “Well, with McElroy’s comments, absolutely.”

Indianapolis _ There are three ways the Broncos can go as they seek to sign a free agent quarterback to back up Tim Tebow.

One is to re-sign Brady Quinn.

Two is to sign a younger backup with starter potential and athleticism like Josh Johnson or Drew Stanton.

Three is to sign an established starter whose career is at a crossroads because of injury. Guys like Chad Henne, Jason Campbell and David Garrard.

Campbell, who went 3-0 against the Broncos the past two years, knows enough about the Tebow circus to not want to get smothered beneath the tent. Garrard, who is 34 and coming off a lost season because of surgery to repair a bulging disc in his back, would be open to the opportunity. He was going to work out for teams around the March 13 opening of the free-agent market, but strep throat set his conditioning back a couple weeks. He is throwing and medical reports are good so he will now throw around April 1.

New Broncos defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio was Garrard’s head coach in Jacksonville and connections always incite possibilities. But Jake Delhomme was a free agent last year with a strong connection to new Broncos head coach John Fox and Delhomme didn’t wind up in Denver.

The guess here is the Broncos will have already signed their free-agent backup by the time Garrard works out.

Damn it just hit me reading this thread how long the off season is gonna be.... and with so little to look forward too in the draft... I almost took the energy to make an argument about fricken Edwards......

_________________When life gives you lemons, find some salt and tequila then invite me!

I'm afrid Mike Vick was no more annointed as a starter than Matt Ryan. Matt doesn't ahve the cachet of the marketing bonanza Mike was but the team pretty clearly isn't going to have real competition at the #2 QB. They just want a #2 who won't embarrass the team should MR be hurt. I think it ties in with their mantra of the benefit of continuity and stability. Redman probably falls on his knees every day thanking the Big Frog Up Above--and Bobby Petrino-- that he is making the coin he is in the league after pretty much throwing in the towel and selling insurance. He ha snot looked too good the last few times he played whereas the first couple of years I thought he did esp in relief of Harrington.

You're right bnb, there is no real competition between Ryan and whoever the #2 is. But what I'm talking about is a #2 that is hungry. A guy that is 22-28 years old, that has a chip on his shoulder and thinks he can be a good starter in this league. That player is going to come to work everyday and push himself to improve, and feel delusional enough that if he busts his butt, maybe he can make this coaching staff think twice about Ryan being the starter, or at least play well enough to catch the eye of 31 other teams.

That player is not Chris Redman. He's just happy to collect his $3 million check and do nothing. And I think that was evidenced by his shoddy play at the end of the year in garbage time. He was a guy that looked rusty vs. Tampa despite the fact that he played 2 whole quarters a few weeks earlier vs. J-ville, was late on reads, and looked like a guy that didn't really understand the offense despite spending 4 years in it. And if you read between the lines, that is a guy that IMO is not putting in the work in the film room.

And the fact that ANYBODY that is young and hungry is going to automatically be an upgrade over Chris Redman regardless of the skillset because Redman is not that.

Another question to broach, if the Browns trade up to get RG3, do you inquire about Colt McCoy?

I'm not sure what good it does to get anybody significant unless you feel that somehow it's going to make Matt try harder and Matt--smart guy that he is--knows that his job is not really threatened by anyone and, thus, he isn't really going to try much harder than he already does. The only way this changes is if he get shurt, #2 comes in and pulls a Tom Brady/Drew Bledsoe scenario. If Colt or Jason Campbell or someone like those guys will come in and play for Redman's salary the, yes, I think that would be a good move. Maybe they improve and you can trade them away for something you need? I don't think it is fair to speculate that Chris doesn't "know the offense." He may be out of sync. He may never get enough reps to operate it well. Word is that Peyton virtually took every single snap for the Colts at practice with the first team which was great until he missed a game. I don't think JPW is going to do much. In college I always thought he looked pretty good but maybe I was just enjoying th efcat that he was helping Auburn beat Bama year after year there for a while.

I think we inquire about anybody..... I want Ryan pushed too; hell I'd like him beaten out!! I don't think its wrong to thinkRyan will improve next year..... That shouldn't stop us from looking for another #2 though.....I wish I could get it out of my mind but I'd love a try with Matt Cassel on the team; but it won't happen. I don't want to see Redmon back; I agree with Pudge that's too much complicity for a guy who probably can't get it done anymore; if he had too. We need to just get 2 Qbs and have them fight it out for #2.

Maybe they improve and you can trade them away for something you need?

Yep, that's part of it. The Falcons had an opportunity to pick up Drew Brees in 2004, but the trade talks fell through, presumably because the Chargers asking price was too step for the Falcons to pay. They instead used a 3rd round pick on Matt Schaub in the draft, so as far as pure speculation goes, I'm assuming the Chargers were asking for a #2, and the Falcons thought that was too step for a backup.

I don't think the Falcons need to go that far to upgrade the current No. 2 QB position, but I definitely think the Falcons should explore all options. For example, if the Browns dealt Colt McCoy for a #4, then I think that is potentially worthwhile, because you're hoping that in 1 or 2 years you can probably flip Mr. McCoy for a #2 or #3 pick. And if you get stuck with him, then so be it. It's not as if he's not a guy that is going to be hurt playing inside a dome.

Now obviously, the Falcons don't have a 4th round pick this year, nor do they have much of any picks that dealing them for backup players is probably not a great strategy (thanks TD, you didn't drop the ball on that one ), but again I think they just need to put forth some effort and at least explore some of these avenues than just settling for a middling player like Chris Redman who has no upside. just give me a little upside. 2 years ago the Bucs traded Luke McCown to Jacksonville for a 7th round pick.

This team should be looking towards the future at every position and should be looking at acquiring assets.

The thing that worries you about Redman is vs. the Bucs, he was very late on pretty much all of his reads and throws. That's what I mean for someone that is rusty. Had it been someone that had sat on the bench for 15 weeks or 6 months, then it might take him some time to readjust to the speed of the game. But before the Bucs game, Redman played 29 snaps and threw the ball on half of them, so it's not like he was just in there to hand the ball off. There's really no excuse for Roddy White to be waiting 1.2 seconds for Redman to throw him the ball.

This was the main beef with the Dreamboat during the summer. He's not going past his first read and even when the guy is open, he's not really throwing it on time.

When you're being asked to manage the game as a backup QB, all you can really be asked to do is to know your reads and throw the ball on time with accuracy. No one is expected this guy to rally the troops and make these big time throws, just put the ball in the right spot for the playmakers already on the field to win their matchups and execute the gameplan. I'll give him a pass on the Jags and Saints game, but against the Bucs, there is really no excuse.

If Trent Edwards doesn’t survive final roster cuts, then there was just no possible way he could have beaten out Mike Kafka.

Because he couldn’t have played any better. And if performance on the field is taken into consideration, it was no contest.

“I’ve been asked, if you don’t make it here, do you want to be somewhere else,” Edwards said Thursday night. “But that’s not what I want. I want to be here. This is the team I want to play for.

“I feel like I can help this team. I feel like I can help these guys [other quarterbacks]. People ask me about getting plays on tape. No, this is where I want to be.”

Edwards, who was out of football last year and looked lost in OTAs and early in training camp, finished a stellar preseason with another terrific performance, this one against the Jets at the Linc.

The veteran, supposedly competing with Kafka for the Eagles’ No. 3 quarterback spot, completed 22 of 32 passes for 197 yards and touchdown passes to Mardy Gilyard and Brett Brackett in the Eagles’ 28-10 win over the Jets at the Linc.

The Jets led 7-0 when Edwards entered the game at the start of the second quarter. He then led the Eagles on TD drives of 69 and 54 yards before halftime.

“It was really nice to get into a rhythm there,” he said. “I think the momentum of the game was kind of going in their direction. There wasn’t a lot of energy, that’s the way it is in the fourth preseason game, where the guys aren’t motivated to play.

“They see all the starters on the sideline in their tennis shoes, and it’s really hard not to be lethargic to start, and I was excited we were able to respond and put a touchdown up on the board.”

The Eagles finished the preseason 4-0 for the first time since 1995, their first season under Ray Rhodes. They went 10-6 that year and won a wild-card game.

Whether he's here or somewhere else, Edwards proved he can still play in the NFL.

Edwards on Thursday evening played seven drives and generated four touchdowns and a short field goal miss.

In three preseason games, Edwards completed 54 of 80 passes (68 percent) for 489 yards, with four touchdowns and no interceptions, good for a 100.5 passer rating.

“I think of it as a golfer,” he said. “You think about a four-round tournament. This is the fourth preseason game, and you want to finish on a strong note, much like a PGA golfer wants to finish on Sunday the right way with a low score, and I feel like for the most part I was pretty consistent through those four games, and that’s what I’m happy about. If I was golfing, I feel like I shot a good round.”

His preseason shows 18 possessions, with six touchdowns, four field goals and two other drives that generated modest field goal misses. The Eagles didn’t go three-and-out on any of his drives in the preseason.

Edwards even showed a knack for scrambling Thursday night, with a 26-yard run on a 3rd-and-24 down to the 11-yard-line to set up his TD pass to Brackett.

If Edwards gets cut on Friday so the Eagles can keep Kafka, then the game was fixed. He never had a chance.

Asked if he feels that he did everything possible to win a roster spot, Edwards evaded the question.

“I don’t even like looking at it that way, to be honest with you,” he said. “I like to think I got better as a player every day here. A big reason I came here was to play for these coaches and with the offensive skill players in the locker room. I feel like I was given a lot of opportunities this preseason to go out and play.

“I wasn’t getting a lot of reps, but guys got dinged up and the next man up has got to perform. I’m really happy with the way the guys around me played. The best quarterbacks in the league get the guys around them to play at a high level and are able to do that on a consistent basis, and I felt like through the four games I was out there, the guys around me did a great job.

“Being in a rhythm with receivers, putting balls where they need to be, for the most part, in the four preseason games, with the chances I’ve had, I feel like I’ve had a pretty good preseason.”

Kafka, who seemed to inherit the No. 2 job behind Michael Vick when the Eagles cut ties with Vince Young, played in only one preseason game and was an ineffective 5-for-9 for 31 yards with an interception and a 23.2 passer rating against the Steelers before breaking his left (non-throwing) hand. He hasn’t played since, and the Eagles aren’t even sure he’ll definitely be available for the opener on Sept. 9 against the Browns.

Rookie Nick Foles played only the first two series Thursday night, going 4-for-6 for 46 yards. He finished the preseason 40-for-63 for 553 yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions, a 110.1 passer rating, and presumably goes into the regular season as Vick’s backup.

Reid has said he’s only going to keep three quarterbacks, so the question is whether Edwards did enough to unseat Kafka, a fourth-round pick in 2010. That No. 3 spot is generally reserved for a young quarterback and not a veteran, but the numbers are difficult to argue with.

"I want to go back and evaluate it and kind of churn over it a little bit here," Reid said after the game. "I'll visit with [General Manager] Howie [Roseman] and the coaches, and we'll come up with what we think is best and go with it. We'll sit down and hash it out. Tough decision, but that's good. That's what we want."

Still, everything points to the Eagles keeping Kafka and not Edwards.

“I get paid to play the quarterback position, I get paid to go out and execute the game plan and practice in the afternoons, and those decisions are above my pay grade,” Edwards said. “I want to be here. They know that, I know that, you guys all know that.

“Those decisions are out of my control. I’ve worked my tail off during this process, thrown some good balls, thrown some bad balls. It’s out of my control. Wish I could give you a better answer, but that’s all I concern myself with.”

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